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Sunday, 7 August 2011

How much do Australian retailers really want our money??...

Talking about the economic state of the country isn’t something that I normally make a point of discussing in my blog, but something has really been plaguing on my mind.

For the past few years, I’ve noticed the press always seem to be bagging on about the negative state of the Australian Retail Sector (I guess sector is the right word). This obviously has a big link to the overall state of the economy. We’ve seen retailers try to do whatever that can to get us to buy, whether it’s discounts, sales, loyalty rewards, you name it they’ve tried it. We also saw the former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd give us a delightful $900 to try to get us to spend spend spend!

There is one thing they haven’t thought of, maybe they should “correct” the price of so many items sold in Australia Retail Chains. Anyone who has left the island of Australia will know how much everything costs here. You can buy the same products/brands in the US or the UK for about half the price. Why would I pay $150 for my Nude moisturizer at Mecca Cosmetica when I can get it for $70 from the UK? It doesn’t make sense.And with so many brands’ websites shipping internationally and websites like HopShopGo starting up the options are limitless (and lets not forget the beloved family member who travels overseas and asks “is there anything you want?”).

Whether it’s make-up, jeans or shoes, everywhere else in the world seems to be selling it cheaper; and I’m not buying the ‘quality’ isn’t as good because it is (I know I’ve bought it).

There are a lot of people who say, “we need to support the Australian economy” and “we have to support the Australian retail business”, but I say why don’t the retailers support us, the consumers? Why shouldn’t we be able to afford what they are selling? I for one would love to support the Australia retailers, and I will as soon as they pull their finger out and realize that now the Australian dollar is stronger the prices of our products really need to change.

Personally I don’t think people are going to start spending big even if they have the cash to do so; and with all the alternative options why would they. I really think if the retailers want things to change, this country needs to make some changes on product prices stat!

Oh and just to prove my point, I spent my $900 from the government on shoes…when I was on holidays in Europe. Thank you Kevin Rudd, my irregular choice shoes (which you can’t even buy here) and I thank you.

8 comments:

Great point - all over the world! If prices are too high, people just won't buy it after a while because you can always find it cheaper somewhere else! It seems like the cost of living has sky-rocketed everywhere - back in the day, the husband worked and paid for the house, car and family, while the wife stayed home - now both mom and dad have to work just to survive!! Prices need to come down on everything!! Great blog! :)

Agree 100% Nat. I could not believe just how cheap everything was when I was in the US in June, and so I went a little crazy with my purchases (my poor credit card haha). It does make me think twice about buying stuff here unfortunately. I also agree with the quality issue. I bought the same fossil wallet over there of the one I lost here, for less than half price.

Well at the moment I can really only comment on Australia since I'm living here. I know all countries have their own price wars going on, but I find it's especially bad here in AU. I also work with a lot of people who have moved from the US and the UK and they all say how bad it is here. Not just with mark-up prices but with the cost of everything.

So true. In my experience, US make-ups and clothings are ridiculously hiked up here in AU; MAC cosmetics literally doubles its price here. So when AU dollars almost equaled to US money, I shop online for make-ups and clothing, where its easier to find a sale too, and have them shipped here after I've accumulated stuff enough for a big box. This saves me so much money, although my strategy may not work for impulsive buyers because the shipping waiting time is a little long.- Adella